1. Field of the invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for mounting a wheel cap made of resin on the disk section of the disk wheel, and more particularly, to an apparatus for mounting the resin wheel cap including a resin half cap, on the disk wheel using a resin retainer.
2. Description of the Prior Art
According to the prior art, such as shown in FIG. 1, a wheel cap made of resin is mounted on a disk wheel in such a manner that a resin claw 2 formed on the resin wheel cap is fitted into a groove 1b formed in the outer wall of a flange 1a provided at the center of the disk wheel. Thus, the wheel cap is fixedly attached to the disk wheel.
According to another example of prior art, as shown in FIG. 2, a wheel cap 2' is fixed to a disk wheel 1' in such a manner that a screw hole 1c' is formed in the disk wheel 1' and the wheel cap 2' is tightened to the disk wheel 1' with a bolt 3 screwed into the screw hole 1c'.
In the case of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, a resin claw 2a creeps thermally due to heat from the disk wheel to reduce the force of the claw 2a applied to a groove 1b in the disk wheel so that there is a possibility that the heavy half cap or wheel cap will come off, while the use of a high heat resistant material for the retainer to overcome the above defect will result in a high manufacturing cost. Furthermore, the resin claw flexes every time when the disk wheel is mounted or dismounted so that it deteriorates and wears to shorten the durability of the wheel cap. Whereas in the case of the apparatus shown in FIG. 2, a problem arises in that it is necessary to form a screw-hole at the portion where the wheel cap is bolted so that no high degree of productivity can be expected.